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You are in a fun price range if you are knowingly picking out of those resorts. It's hard to make a recommendation without knowing what you want (house reef, boat transfer vs seaplane, overwater villa w/ pool) and kind of out of the scope of this thread. If you'd like help, please hit me via PM. I can refer you to a few travel agents that saved me money when I stayed at both Constance Halaveli and my upcoming trip to Huvafen Fushi, not to mention they only require a small deposit until 45 days before the trip. Gili is the only resort close enough to do a boat transfer. People love it, I like the Crusoe residences, but it does look a bit dated and definitely more rugged than refined. I would suggest looking at Huvafen Fushi as it's really nice and close enough for a boat transfer. Amazing reviews, but reviews are tough there given that the place as a whole is magical. Como Maalifushi is an hour seaplane ride away. you'll waste a whole day in transit there I fear. And have to leave the night before to make your flight.Maalifushi is going to cater to families, however it was our 2nd pick. When I realized I didn't want to spend a whole day getting there and another chunk getting back I eliminated it but the photos are really nice. Laamu is a domestic flight to Gan (I think), again, lots of time in transfer. I know little about it but supposed to be nice. Not as nice as the others I don't think Cheval Blanc is $$$$$$ but really nice, they have their own seaplane. Expect to pay almost 1k for just their seaplane transfers. I also wasn't a fan of their overwater villa design personally. I would definitely consider Reethi Rah, Four Seasons Laanda, Jumeirah Dhevawhatever, depending on what you want to do and if you're ok with a seaplane ride taking up an unknown amount of your day getting to the resort and leaving the resort. sellouts fucked around with this message at 22:38 on Jun 9, 2015 |
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Jun 9, 2015 22:35
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Bad gateway, sweet error
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Jun 9, 2015 22:37
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Yeah that's a real fun price range. I'd encourage something accessible via speedboat to MLE since you have an early morning flight, you really don't want to burn a day on Hulhule if you can avoid it. You're pretty much stuck at the resort and the food is meh. You'll be much happier staying on your resort island that night and getting an early morning boat transfer. MLE isn't that difficult to get in/out. Male is like god drat waterworld and it's depressing frankly. I'm not at my home computer but when I get back I'll look up the resort we stayed at and the others we had suggested to us. Also if you have more specific questions, feel free to PM me. I'm still connected with quite a few ex-pats that are in country and can give good information. Whip Slagcheek fucked around with this message at 00:45 on Jun 10, 2015 |
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Jun 10, 2015 00:43
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Whip hit me with your thoughts. Am I making a mistake with Huvafen Fushi? Lots of people seem to recommend it, but in that price range there are a ton of options.
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Jun 10, 2015 00:57
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Huvafen Fushi is great if you want to stay speedboat accessible. It's the definition of picturesque. But really any of them are, it's pretty hard to screw up a resort selection in the Maldives. Looking back at my old itinerary, we actually stayed at Gili, which isn't far from Huvafen. Gili was pretty great. Easily accessible and the service was fantastic, though talking to the workers away from the bar and restaurants it seems working conditions aren't great. They essentially live at their island for weeks at a time, but that seems to be the dirty little secret across all of the resorts. Only drawback with Gili was that the accommodations felt slightly dated for the price point, but really you're not going to the Maldives to sit in your room. Think the only time we went back to the room besides sleeping was to change out of our beachwear.
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Jun 10, 2015 01:14
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I have a question not necessarily about finding the cheapest flight, but about routes and layovers. I'm looking to fly from San Francisco to Singapore at the beginning of August one-way, and I found a good price for that - $618 leaving on Friday the 7th. There are two options to get to Singapore with the same price: a 5.5 hour layover in Seoul, or a 3 hour layover in LAX followed by a 1.5 hour layover in Tokyo. I feel like I might be a little paranoid for asking, but with this MERS breakout popping up in the news more and more, would you guys think it's crazy to choose the route with two layovers just so I can avoid Seoul? The overall travel time is only 20 minutes more. Edit: I guess I'm not that paranoid. Singapore Airlines is waiving cancellation and rebooking fees if you want to change your flight from stopping in Seoul. So is Cathay Pacific. Edit 2: Maybe I am paranoid. The CDC doesn't seem to think there's much to worry about and I couldn't find a mention on travel.state.gov. LosMein fucked around with this message at 18:41 on Jun 14, 2015 |
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Jun 14, 2015 16:15
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You're being paranoid. I don't think you really need to worry about exposure to MERS on a five hour layover. Avoid the hassle of multiple airport changes and just go to Seoul. The airlines are doing that just as CYA.
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Jun 14, 2015 20:20
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Also you get the bonus of making everyone in your life freak out about how you're going to die if you spend 5 hours in Seoul airport. Seriously, I went to Japan for a week about six months after the big earthquake and tsunami and basically every single person in my life except my mom who actually understands science was telling me and my husband "oh no don't go you'll die of radiation poisoning!!!" My answer was always "if we get screwed up by spending a week in Tokyo six months after the actual incident the world is going to have way bigger problems than me getting leukemia." Seriously though, MERS is confined to hospitals right now, you'll be fine.
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Jun 14, 2015 21:24
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Haha thanks.. I'm usually the last person to overreact. Maybe I was just looking for an excuse to take a flight on an A380.
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Jun 14, 2015 23:14
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LAX is truly horrible, go through Seoul.
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Jun 14, 2015 23:30
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It seems like the only people who leave reviews for airlines are people who want to complain. Is there a good place to go for reliable, non-bitching airline ratings and reviews? For a trip from BOS to PDX, the cheapest options are Spirit, United, US Airways, and American. I need to compare.
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Jun 15, 2015 01:33
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Never fly Spirit. loving walk with nails in your shoes to your destination before you consider Spirit. The rest are all the same level of mediocre service, fly the cheapest.
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Jun 15, 2015 01:53
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peanut posted:LAX is truly horrible, go through Seoul. Tom Bradley isn't bad now and as long as your connection isn't too tight transferring isn't that bad. At least it's rarely subject to flow control.
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Jun 15, 2015 02:10
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Whip Slagcheek posted:Never fly Spirit. loving walk with nails in your shoes to your destination before you consider Spirit. The one roundtrip I flew with Spirit I didn't find them to be particularly terrible about anything. I even got a bag on board for free that was big enough I should've had to pay 
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Jun 15, 2015 04:12
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My biggest gripe with United was the cramped seat with lack of technology. The first flight out didn't even have wifi, which had been advertised. I just don't want to have to deal with that again, especially since it's my money this time and not business. Maybe I was spoiled after flying JetBlue to Florida years ago? Edit: For my comfort, is it worth paying an extra $150 for non-stop flights with more reputable airlines? This is a vacation, after all. Raimundus fucked around with this message at 04:39 on Jun 15, 2015 |
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Jun 15, 2015 04:19
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Time/effort is money.
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Jun 15, 2015 05:35
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Raimundus posted:My biggest gripe with United was the cramped seat with lack of technology. The first flight out didn't even have wifi, which had been advertised. I just don't want to have to deal with that again, especially since it's my money this time and not business. Jetblue does a non-stop to PDX, though its likely a little more expensive than the legacy carriers. What are your travel dates?
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Jun 15, 2015 05:48
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Raimundus posted:My biggest gripe with United was the cramped seat with lack of technology. Buy an iPad or iPhone or surface pro or nintendo 3ds or a hardcover book and since it's for pleasure and not business survive without wifi for a few hours. In tyool 2015 there's so many ways to overcome no IFE on flights less than 8 hours. You're flying a US airline in economy, honestly "dealing with it" is part of the price of admission. My advice is to take the direct flight so you don't have to deal with more than one chance of maintenance / weather / whatever problems.
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Jun 15, 2015 06:44
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Whip Slagcheek posted:Jetblue does a non-stop to PDX, though its likely a little more expensive than the legacy carriers. Last week of August, 21st to 29th. The cheapest non-stop available now is a "Hacker Fare" Alaska Airlines/Jetblue combo. Aaaand the price went down overnight. I think I'll grab it, unless anyone here says Hacker Fare sucks? sellouts posted:Buy an iPad or iPhone or surface pro or nintendo 3ds or a hardcover book and since it's for pleasure and not business survive without wifi for a few hours. In tyool 2015 there's so many ways to overcome no IFE on flights less than 8 hours. I was unprepared last time, yes. I'll try to remember to drop some movies on my tablet before I go. And I'll see about getting drunk before I board. Raimundus fucked around with this message at 01:44 on Jun 16, 2015 |
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Jun 16, 2015 01:37
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Raimundus posted:Last week of August, 21st to 29th. The cheapest non-stop available now is a "Hacker Fare" Alaska Airlines/Jetblue combo. JetBlue and Alaska don't interline so you'll have separate tickets and an unprotected connection. If you're cool with that risk, then go for it as price is king.
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Jun 16, 2015 11:52
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Raimundus posted:Last week of August, 21st to 29th. The cheapest non-stop available now is a "Hacker Fare" Alaska Airlines/Jetblue combo. Are you able to fly back a day early or two days after? Flying on the weekend is the most expensive thing you can be doing. I always try to book my trips with Tuesday or Wednesday flights, though Monday tends to be ok as well.
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Jun 16, 2015 15:35
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If there is a better thread for this, let me know I have an unprotected connection between a Copa and Delta flight (having to go pickup my suitcases and move them myself, go through customs, the works) and Delta has hosed up their end. Before I had ~4 hours of layover, and now I have just over 2. All alternative flights range from horrible, to impossible. Does anyone know how realistic it would be to get from an international arrival from Panama scheduled for 3:11pm, to a domestic flight now scheduled for 5:20 at Dulles, with 2 checked suitcases?
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Jun 16, 2015 22:54
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Redczar posted:If there is a better thread for this, let me know Are you going to ATL, JFK, MSP, or DTW? You'll arrive into Terminal B and it shouldn't take a terribly long time to process there, so two hours is probably just fine. Be glad you're not on UA and have to process at the mid-field terminal.
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Jun 16, 2015 23:45
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I am going to DTW so that's good news then
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Jun 17, 2015 00:02
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Mackieman posted:JetBlue and Alaska don't interline so you'll have separate tickets and an unprotected connection. If you're cool with that risk, then go for it as price is king. Not that I've done this before (which is why I'm here), but I'm not seeing how it's much different than a normal airfare. I take a one-way trip to PDX via Alaska, and then a one-way home to BOS via JetBlue. What risk does this introduce? I've already paid, so I guess I'll just have to prepare myself for whatever. Whip Slagcheek posted:Are you able to fly back a day early or two days after? Nope. I don't think that would mesh well with my job schedule. Raimundus fucked around with this message at 01:24 on Jun 17, 2015 |
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Jun 17, 2015 01:19
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Connections on different airlines mean they don't give a poo poo if your first flight is delayed. Different airlines for departure/return shouldn't be a problem. Fwiw, you usually have to get your checked bags out then re-check for international-domestic connections anyway, even on the same carrier.
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Jun 17, 2015 01:33
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peanut posted:Fwiw, you usually have to get your checked bags out then re-check for international-domestic connections anyway, even on the same carrier. Yes. Wherever you first make contact with US soil you have to go through customs with your luggage and then re-check them with your airline. It should just be a drop-off desk with an employee or a conveyor belt with an attendant tossing bags as they're brought over. Shouldn't be too difficult, Dulles is a decent airport.
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Jun 17, 2015 04:14
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Got my tickets to Tokyo finally squared away  On the way there we have a 2.5 hour layover in Beijing that looks like it's within the same terminal. I've heard some lovely things about Air China's ability to be on time though, so I'm mildly concerned about that. Come to think of it, I've heard lots of lovely things about Air China in general, but for $780 roundtrip I really can't complain too much. On the way back we have a 24 hour layover also in Beijing - any recommendations for stuff to rush out and see during that time? We arrive around 1-2pm and depart at 1:30pm the following afternon, so it really is a full day stop.
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Jun 17, 2015 17:25
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pig slut lisa posted:The one roundtrip I flew with Spirit I didn't find them to be particularly terrible about anything. I even got a bag on board for free that was big enough I should've had to pay When Spirit works it's cheap (if you can manage to avoid all the fees) and it gets you there. When things go wrong you can be in for a huge world of pain. If you hit traffic and miss the cutoff, you're buying a new ticket. They have a mechanical issue: you're possibly sitting around for days waiting for an open seat on a future flight along with everyone else who got cancelled. And no, they aren't putting you on a different airline nor are they paying for a hotel. Had a friend have to buy herself a last-minute $800 ticket to get home after Spirit thought she missed her outbound flight (she didn't) and cancelled her return flight. She was looking at small claims court to try and get that back except you have to sue them down where their headquarters is around Fort Lauderdale and there are stories on the Internet that they will send a lawyer and countersue for legal fees. The downsides might be worth the cheap price to someone who can cope with the potential issues (has someplace to stay at both ends of the trip and no fixed schedule to get home), but I have to think 90+% of the people flying Spirit have no idea and went "oooh, cheapest."
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Jun 17, 2015 17:43
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BeepBoopBatman posted:On the way back we have a 24 hour layover also in Beijing Ask in the  T/T thread. One afternoon isn't enough to see the Great Wall, but you can definitely get your Mao on (you'll need to get a transit visa on-arrival.)
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Jun 17, 2015 23:19
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Raimundus posted:Not that I've done this before (which is why I'm here), but I'm not seeing how it's much different than a normal airfare. I take a one-way trip to PDX via Alaska, and then a one-way home to BOS via JetBlue. What risk does this introduce? As peanut noted, two one-ways is quite different than having two segments on two airlines that don't interline to get you someplace. I book different airlines for the outbound and return of a trip all the time; what I try to avoid (unsuccessfully whilst in China most of the time) is to have to move between non-interlined carriers in one direction. The last time I did was flying CTU-PVG on Sichuan Airlines (which interlines with approximately no one) and then connecting to United for PVG-LAX. I had to claim and recheck my bag at PVG and almost missed the cutoff for bag check with United. It would've sucked big time had that happened as there were no other options to get back to the US that time of the evening. That's an extreme example compared to what you were talking about, but yeah.
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Jun 18, 2015 02:32
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BeepBoopBatman posted:Got my tickets to Tokyo finally squared away Go to Tienanmen, skip the Forbidden City unless you're super into Chinese history. Slow Boat Brewing is near a subway stop and an excellent place for a burger and locally made craft beer if that's your thing. Otherwise I'd go to The Brown Door which is across the street from the Pearl Market (near the Temple of Heaven).
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Jun 18, 2015 02:35
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fordan posted:The downsides might be worth the cheap price to someone who can cope with the potential issues (has someplace to stay at both ends of the trip and no fixed schedule to get home), but I have to think 90+% of the people flying Spirit have no idea and went "oooh, cheapest." That's exactly who Spirit is looking for. They thrive on the utterly ignorant and capitalize on that ignorance. Spirit can be fine if you know exactly what you're getting into and plan accordingly; unfortunately, most of the people that are attracted to Spirit have no earthly clue and, in many cases, larger issues (like their lips not touching when they speak).
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Jun 18, 2015 02:37
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Whip Slagcheek posted:Dulles is a decent airport. 
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Jun 18, 2015 02:38
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I mean, its big but I've never had an issue there. Also, Chipotle.
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Jun 18, 2015 05:22
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Whip Slagcheek posted:I mean, its big but I've never had an issue there. You must not fly UA.
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Jun 18, 2015 21:08
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Saw this about Spirit last night: But so let's talk about Spirit. I've flown them a few times from MSP to Chicago because who gives a poo poo it's a 45 minute flight. I understand the base fare doesn't include much, I understand paying extra for luggage and snacks and basically everything is ala carte. I understand there's less seat pitch than other carriers and that the seats don't recline. I also understand that it's a budget airlines, and one of the way they can save money is with a smaller fleet. This means delays ripple through the network (I've had this happen, flying back from Chicago in the evening, a plane left Miami late in the morning and it threw the whole network off). But so what are some of the other ways Spirit sucks? A lot of people seem to get mad at the baggage fees and the seats but Spirit is pretty open about that so those people are basically wrong, but I'm guessing there are other concerns that Spirit doesn't openly advertise.
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Jun 18, 2015 21:38
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Mackieman posted:You must not fly UA. -- IRT Spirit Airlines. It's 100% their absurd number of delays and their piss poor customer service. From the check in counter to the gate attendants to the flight attendants, no one gives a rats rear end about whatever issue you're having or how they've inconvenienced you. Corporate customer service doesn't get a gently caress either. I've talked to their corporate people until my face turned blue only to get brushed aside and offered a half rear end flight voucher. You can not rely on them to get you to your destination at the time on the itinerary and God help you if they have to cancel a flight. I will sooner stick my cock into a jet turbine before I'll ever fly with them again. Whip Slagcheek fucked around with this message at 22:38 on Jun 18, 2015 |
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Jun 18, 2015 22:33
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FISHMANPET posted:Saw this about Spirit last night: There's a whole bunch of them posted about ten posts up: fordan posted:When Spirit works it's cheap (if you can manage to avoid all the fees) and it gets you there.
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Jun 18, 2015 22:37
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FISHMANPET posted:Saw this about Spirit last night: To me, I think it boils down to three things:
They also have a long and storied history of not paying their business partners, like the hotel that wouldn't accept vouchers because Spirit doesn't pay them. It's another reality of their lovely business model where it's easier to keep the revenue and deal with claims later than it is to pay the bills now. And that behavior towards those vendor relationships makes me wonder, a bit more than casually, about other things they're supposed to be paying for -- like maintenance. Finally, and I have this issue with JetBlue and Southwest as well, they don't interline with anyone. So if they can't do what they said they would do, you're hosed if you were on any sort of a schedule. For the most leisurely of leisure travelers, this may be less of any issue, but it's going to be a big problem for just about everyone else. Combine that with a fleet utilization strategy that sees very little in the way of schedule elasticity, and IRROPs will be pure hell on their network. JetBlue used to have significant issues with this and has made some changes in the last few years. Southwest has never run into major issues like that because of their size, their fleet planning, and a significantly different business model. But all three, in the event of IRROPs, can't do anything for you if something goes tits up. Just last year when that rear end in a top hat set the ORD TRACON facility on fire, I was flying on Southwest CLT-MDW-BUF and got diverted on the first segment to IND. Had I not booked a last minute award on United to go home and abandon that trip, I would've been stuck in IND for three days. Most passengers don't have the knowledge or means at their disposal that I am fortunate to have, so it can get real lovely in a big hurry.
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Jun 18, 2015 22:39
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